John welcomes back John Gatins (Flight, Coach Carter) to talk about reviving a dormant project and actually getting it made – like he just did with his new film Little Wing. They look at how films die, what brings them back to life, and go deep into the mechanics of sports movies. We also follow […]
John has the flu (or does he?) and Craig is missing, so we’re going back through the vaults to look at the mechanics of mystery and suspense. How do writers exploit the audience’s curiosity? What builds and breaks their trust? How do you use suspense across genres? And what do these techniques look like on […]
John welcomes writer and showrunner Francesca Sloane (Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Atlanta) to talk about her process of bringing a big-screen property to television. She shares how she and Donald Glover found their way into the story, how it evolved in development, building a room that was all women of color, re-writing on set, and […]
John welcomes Celine Song (Past Lives) to chart her journey from playwright to Oscar-nominated screenwriter. We discuss the intricacies of writing bilingually, the similarities between theater and a writers room, finding the right collaborators and how writing prepared Celine for the rigors of directing. We also follow up on foreign courts, the Tiffany problem, and […]
John and Craig host another round of the Three Page Challenge, where they give their honest feedback on three listener-submitted scripts. They offer insights into using sound realistically, writing action that can be easily directed, finding subtext in dialogue, and navigating complex points of view. But first, we dig into several tricky listener questions: How […]
John and Craig discuss the dynamics of fandom, attempting to chart how things get cool, then hot, then terrible. But how are fandoms organized? Where do subcultures start? And how should you engage with the community that forms around your work? We also look at an alternative screenplay format from one of last year’s best […]
The DGA surprised the town yesterday, announcing an update to their already-signed agreement with the AMPTP. The new deal includes select pay bumps and the streaming bonus gained by WGA and SAG-AFTRA after their lengthy strikes. John and Drew are back to look at what we know about this off-cycle development and ask questions like […]
John welcomes back Aline Brosh McKenna to look at how both you and your characters can become more “agentic.” What are the traps and pitfalls of going after what you want? How do you get people to engage with your protagonist, especially when the protagonist is yourself? Then it’s another round of How Would This […]
John and Craig investigate those details that are accurate and authentic, but can pull viewers out of the story. They look for ways to balance what is realistic with what is believable, and how to get rid of distractions and keep your audience focused on what matters. We also discuss popular names, follow up on […]
John and Craig take a look at the many For Your Consideration scripts suddenly available to read to see what lessons can be learned from movies that were actually made. They find best practices for establishing setting, using “we see” and “we hear,” complicated setups, directing on the page, and how to get right into […]
In this compendium episode, John and Craig look at how we can best articulate our characters’ inner lives and get the audience invested in them. They discuss the intricacies of point of view, finding truthful emotional states, and why it’s so important for your characters to be liars. How do you engage an audience’s empathy? […]
John and Craig are joined by the ghosts of Scriptnotes past and present (Megana and Drew) for a festive competition: discussing the perils of studio bake-offs — pitting writer against writer for one coveted job — while simultaneously judging three of LA’s finest holiday cookies. We also look at Netflix’s recently released viewership data, follow […]
John welcomes writer and director Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight, Inception) to discuss experimentation, subjectivity and adaptation as they take an in-depth look at his screenplay, Oppenheimer. They explore Chris’ writing process, how to make non-linear structures work, finding the story in real-life events, being kinetic on the page, the importance of embracing editing, and […]
John and Craig look at several notable figures in the news and ask, How Would This Be a Biopic? They examine the lives of Henry Kissinger, Sandra Day O’Connor, George Santos, Rosalynn Carter, and Sam Altman to see which are best suited for the big screen, and declare once-and-for-all the proper way to pronounce “biopic.” […]
John moderates Breaking the Stigma, a panel on addiction and mental health with guests Gemma Baker (creator of CBS’s Mom), Dr. Corey Waller (specialist in pain, addiction and emergency medicine), Dr. Holly Daniels (specialist in eating disorders and mental health issues), and journalist Zachary Siegel. We discuss how addiction and mental health issues are portrayed […]
John and Craig investigate their anxiety and ask, why is the future so hard to predict right now? They discuss everything from what’s going at OpenAi, the upcoming elections, a new service that uses AI to generate script coverage, and muse about how to move forward in a time of unprecedented uncertainty. We also follow […]
John welcomes Jesse David Fox (Comedy Book, Good One) and Greg Iwinski (Last Week Tonight, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert) to “explain the joke” and discuss how comedy works. They explore everything from harnessing your comedic voice, building a career in comedy, the importance of diversity in late night, to fundamental questions about the […]
John offers a host of career-focused insights as he tackles our overflowing mailbag to answer as many listener questions as he can. What’s the best way to keep track of shower thoughts? How do you build a good creative workplace? How do you disclose your past wrongs to a future employer? What is Appendix A? […]
After 118 days on strike, SAG-AFTRA has a tentative deal with the AMPTP. John and Drew look through the details of the agreement to see what gains the actors union was able to make on streaming, self-tapes, performance capture, AI protections, and residuals. What are the current effects of this agreement? And what’s next for […]
John and Craig host an in-depth look at the 1987 classic, The Princess Bride, recorded live at the WGA Theatre in 2019. They discuss how the “abridged” structure brings us only the best parts of the story and what this means for the characters and world. From the frame story to the myth of the […]